Printer Problems Troubleshooting Guide

Important
What kind of printer problem are you currently having? If your paper feeding
mechanism is working (i.e. paper is coming out when trying to print), skip
this article and go directly to our print quality problems
article instead.

Luckily, quite many printer problems are generic and can be solved
independent of printer brand and model by going through a step by step analysis.
Please go through the questions below and correct any problem that you find.

Have you made any recent changes to the printer?

Have you made any changes recently on your printer or in the printer’s settings? If this is the case, please try to reverse what you have done before continuing since this might easily solve your current problem.

Do you have a power failure?

Have you checked that your printer problem is not due to a power failure? A printer
that is switched on normally have a green indicator light lit. If the light is
not green, check that your power button is set to on, that you have electricity in your
wall outlet and that the power cable is connected at both ends. When power is applied, you should be able to hear the printing mechanism move inside or the printer should start to "hum".

If above is checked and the printer still not seems to indicate that it is
switched on, it could be that your printer has a serious problem and you need to contact your printer maker. First of all, check the instructions that are given for this error in the printer manual before proceeding contacting your printer
manufacturer.

Links to most printer manufacturers can be found on our
printer manufacturer list.
It's worth the effort to visit your printer makers website since your printing
problem might be model specific. Some printer makers have their own printer
troubleshooting forums or Q&A guides where you can find answers to the most
common printer problems.

Do you have a printer cable failure?

The printer will not be printing if its not connected to the computer. Check
that the printer cable connecting your printer to the computer is firmly attached at
both ends. Apart from this cable, there should be one more cable which is the
one connecting to the wall outlet.

Does the indicator lamp indicate a problem?

Is your printer indicator lamp lit in another color than green (orange or red for
example) or is your indicator lamp blinking?

Check your printer manual for indications on what the color/blinking might mean. Every printer model have its own set of alerts which mean that you need to find your printer manual to understand what your specific
printer problems are.

Are you printing to the correct printer?

Make sure that you are printing to the printer you think you are doing.

It could be that the printer is not printing if the default printer has changed or
if you are trying to print to a virtual printer e.g. a PDF printer.

To check and change the current settings for the default printer:

Assuming that you are using Windows XP:1. Go to the start bar.
2. Click on the control panel and choose Printers and Faxes.
3. A window opens up with icons for all available printers, right-click the icon
for the printer that you want to use as the default printer.
4. On the menu that pops-up, look for the setting "Set as Default" or "Set as
Default Printer". If it is checked, this printer is already set as the default
printer otherwise click the selection to set the printer as the default printer.

Assuming that you are using Windows Vista:
1. Go to the start bar.
2. Click on the control panel and choose Hardware and Sound and clicking on
Printers.
3. A window opens up with icons for all available printers, right-click the icon
for the printer that you want to use as the default printer.
4. Right click the printer you want to set and mark it as the default printer if
it's not already marked as such.

Is the printhead obstructed in its movement?

The printhead needs to be able to move freely. Open the cover on the printer and check that no paper is hindering the movement of the printhead.

If your printer is newly bought and unpacked, check that no tape is attached
causing your printer problems by hindering the printhead movement.

Are you out of paper or do you have a paper jam?

Make sure your paper tray is not empty, nearly empty or jammed full. All these conditions might
cause your printer problems since the
paper feeding mechanism will not operate.

Do you have the correct paper size in the correct paper tray? Check your printer manual for the correct ranges of thickness and paper size.

If you print in a humid environment, your paper may be damp. This can obstruct the paper movement mechanism jamming the paper in the printer.

The rollers feeding the paper through the printer might be worn down. Note
that changing rollers can be easy to do on some printer models while very hard
to on others.

A paper sheet might jam the printing mechanism causing the printer to not
run. If you have paper in the printer mechanism this needs to be manually removed before the printer can
print again. Please note that you might need to open many access doors on the printer to verify that no paper is stuck.
Always pull the paper in the direction of the paper path, if you pull the paper
backwards you might damage the printer.

Are your ink or toner cartridges empty?

Ink cartridge or
toner cartridge related printer problems should normally be detected by the printer which then should indicate this with a blinking or non green lit indicator lamp.

If this is the case, exchange the empty cartridge with a new one and you should be up and running again. You can find new printer cartridges that fit your printer model in our
ink & toner search.

Is your printer connected to a network?

Is your printer connected directly to your computer or to a network? If it is connected to a network, check with your network administrator that the network connection and the network settings are in order. The network indicator lamp on your printer (next to the network socket) should normally be blinking in green.

If the printer is not printing, have you checked that you actually are
standing and waiting for paper to come out from the correct printer? It is not
to uncommon for people to go to Printer A while they are in fact printing to
Printer B.

Have you checked the printer queue?

Check that the printer queue is not stuck causing you the printer problems. If you use the Windows operating system, go to start
menu and click on your printer and faxes icon in the control panel. Double click on the printer in question and try to remove all documents from the printer queue before trying to print again.